Have you forgotten to look for alternatives?

Sometimes, when a product or service performs well, people are satisfied to accept it as the only option.

But does accepting one option as the best blind people to other, just-as-good or better, options?

Consider the Seeing Eye dogs that do a marvelous job helping blind individuals get around. The dogs enable their owners to be much more mobility than otherwise possible.

Of course, guide dogs are not perfect.  The dogs only work until they are seven, training costs are high and some people are allergic to dogs.

Still, Seeing Eye dogs are highly regarded and definitely a service that will be in demand for years to come.  There is nothing wrong with the guide dog concept.

That doesn't mean though that fresh thinking about the subject is useless.

In North Carolina, however, Janet and Don Burleson are trying something a little different.  Instead of dogs, they train miniature horses to be guides for the blind.

The tiny horses are trained to the same level as dogs, and undergo the same riot training as police horses to make sure that they stay calm in all situations. 

They're also well-suited to the work--with the horses' natural protective instincts for taking care of injured "herd members", a lifespan of up to 50 years and a long memory.

In fact, many blind equestrians who ride regular-sized horses rave about how well their horses look after them.

Of course, guide horses are not perfect either, but many guide horse owners are thrilled with their miniatures.  It's a great alternative for people who have allergies, need a guide animal with a long lifespan, or simply love horses.

Creativity isn't always about fixing something that is broken. Creativity sometimes involves looking at a situation in another way and coming up with a new alternative that fills the existing need differently.

Unlike technical innovations, neither guide-animal option is likely to make the other obsolete because both have many strong benefits.  The fact is, however, that when two horse-enthusiasts took an open-minded approach to the concept of "guide animal", they created another viable option for people who have limited mobility.  And that's definitely a good thing!

(In case you're wondering: miniature horses can be housebroken!)

Comments

[Kent Blumberg]

Cool story. You had me fooled - I thought some sort of techie alternative was coming. Didn't expect the horse wrinkle. What an interesting idea.

I really love the idea of horses as guide animals. It's a spin on the regular method, and has some unique benefits. Plus, the mini horses walk around in sneakers. If I ever go blind, I'm insisting on a guide horse!

[Donna Cutting]

Katie,

So glad to have found your blog through Scott Ginsberg's blog.

What you describe above is exactly the reason why leaders should look for ideas outside of their own industry. Many people network with those in their industry (which is a great thing) - but they end up with a picture of what their product or service should look like. Look to other industries for ideas and you could revolutionize what service in your industry looks like.

This is exactly what High Point University did. (I have profiled them in my forthcoming book). They didn't go to other Universities for ideas - they looked to corporations. And they have completely changed with customer service looks like in a university setting.

Great blog, Katie. I'll be back.

Thanks for writing with your comment and letting me know that you came from Scott Ginsberg's blog. I love what he's doing, it's so fresh to see people getting attention for doing unique and memorable things like that.

I agree that networking with people in only one industry can limit ideas. It's just that people in the same industry are usually dealing with the exact same challenges and ways of thinking as everyone else, and it's hard to break free of that.

Your upcoming book sounds interesting and I'm looking forward to reading more about it on your blog! Looking forward to having you back too!